


Why You Should Never Skip Morning Tea

by SingingInTheRaiin



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jon and Martin are both extremely awkward people when it comes down to it, Jon is a certified idiot, M/M, Misunderstandings, hit and run, i mean besides the pain of getting hit by a car, not really much hurt though, references to getting blackout drunk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-01-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:54:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22445974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SingingInTheRaiin/pseuds/SingingInTheRaiin
Summary: Jon gets hit by a car. He wakes up in the hospital to find Martin watching over him, thanks to him having accidentally made Martin his emergency contact.
Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan Sims
Comments: 12
Kudos: 307





	Why You Should Never Skip Morning Tea

Jon was going to be late for work. The worst part about it was that Jon was never late for work, and today was going to destroy that reputation of punctuality. He didn’t understand why today decided to start with a series of events that all led to him racing against the clock, but he knew he could at least try to minimize just how late he was going to be. 

Unfortunately, Jon being in such a rush also meant he hadn’t had time for his morning cup of tea, which meant that he was still half-asleep as he raced to work. So he was not alert enough to get out of a way when a car zipped past a yellow light just as it turned red, clearly in more of a hurry than even Jon was as it refused to stop at the pedestrian passing. 

One moment, Jon was jogging to work, mentally making a list of all the things he needed to do as soon as he got there, and the next moment, he was lying flat on his back, staring up at the gray sky in a daze as he tried to ignore the throbbing pain that was pretty much everywhere. 

He was vaguely aware of a lot of people gathering around him, but he couldn’t pick out any specific words from the sea of voices talking over each other. Eventually, he heard the sound of sirens, and distantly thought that it would be just his luck if it turned out that his flat had burned down once he’d left it. It was that kind of a day.

When the ambulance stopped next to him, he was almost surprised, and a couple of EMTs hopped out and told everyone to back off. Jon tried to listen, but he found that just raising his head sent a shock of pain through his body, and he had to lie back down. He wanted to apologize to the EMT, but they seemed busy, so he thought it would be best not to distract them.

One of the few things that stood out was the sound of one of the EMTs saying, “Bloody hell buddy, how are you even still awake?” 

That was a good question. Jon was useless at staying awake without his morning cup of tea. Maybe it would have been better to just be late, but what kind of an example would that set for everyone else in the Archives if their boss just casually strolled in whenever he pleased? It was already difficult enough to wrangle everyone into doing their jobs, and Jon didn’t want to give anyone any excuse to slack off.

But since he was already going to be very late at this point, Jon decided that it would probably be best to at least be a little bit more well-rested before going in, so he let out a reluctant sigh, and then closed his eyes. It wouldn’t hurt anyone for him to take a little nap, and in fact, the others would probably prefer it if he did, since it usually made him much less cranky. So yeah, he’d take a bit of a rest for now.  
,,,

When Jon woke up to the sound of soft beeps and white walls, he immediately closed his eyes again, and also wanted to slap himself for being an idiot. He fully remembered his last couple of minutes of consciousness, and wondered how the hell he’d somehow managed to not notice that he’d been hit by a speeding car? That seemed like the kind of thing that would be rather difficult to forget.

Jon tried to shift up so that he could get his bearings, but even the small movement was painful, and he let out a groan of frustration. “Oh, you’re awake! I should- should I get a doctor, or- Jon? How are you feeling? Ah, that’s probably a dumb question, considering the circumstances, I just meant…”

Jon turned his head as far to the side as he could (which unfortunately wasn’t very much at all), and saw Martin perched awkwardly on the edge of a chair next to the bed. His eyes were a bit red, and he was staring at Jon with an unfamiliar look. Or maybe Jon just didn’t recognize it because everything further than an inch away had a blur to it. “‘M fine, Martin,” he mumbled, voice rougher than he’d expected. “Can you just hand me my glasses?”

Martin twisted his hands together. “Oh- oh, I’m sorry, but they got broken in the accident. Do you- do you remember what happened?” 

“Hard to forget getting hit by a car. Hope the driver at least apologized.”

Martin winced, and then sat up straighter in his seat. “Actually… it was a hit and run. And none of the witnesses were able to get a very good look at the vehicle so…”

Jon let out a tired sigh. “Right, of course they got away. Why am I not surprised at this point? That’s just how this day seems to be going, isn’t it.”

There was a moment of silence, and then Martin cleared his throat. “It’s uh, actually, um, well you got hit three days ago.”

Jon’s eyes widened, and then he slumped back completely against the pillows tucked under his head. “Honestly, this just goes to show that my theory about sleep being evil is actually accurate.” When Martin didn’t say anything, Jon rolled his eyes. “I’m kidding, Martin. Mostly.” 

In Jon’s defense, it’s not like he’d ever felt better after a full night’s sleep, and he definitely didn’t feel better after taking a three day nap. It would probably be best for everyone if Jon could just figure out some way to avoid having to ever go to sleep again. There was probably a Leitner out there somewhere for that, but then Jon scolded himself for even jokingly considering the idea. 

When he realized that Martin still hadn’t said anything, Jon forced himself to look back over at the other man, despite the pain it caused to move around at all. “What are you doing here, anyways?” 

He didn’t mean to sound so rude, but he felt like he had a pass to sound a little extra grumpy today, all things considered. Martin sighed. “I don’t even know, to be honest. I- you’re the one who put me down as your emergency contact. I had no idea you did that. Why… why did you?”

It took Jon’s sleep addled mind an extra few seconds to figure out what Martin was talking about. Then he suddenly remembered a day not too long after he’d first been promoted to Head Archivist. Elias had called Jon up to his office, and said that there were some blank spots in his files, mainly not having an emergency contact. Elias had insisted that it was necessary, but Jon hadn’t been able to think of a single person he could list, so he took the papers and promised to bring them back by the end of the week.

Then Jon had rushed back down to the basement, and physically bumped into Martin. Martin had looked genuinely concerned when he’d asked whether Jon was alright or not, but Jon had just snapped something back in his usual fashion, and then stormed off.

Later that night, Jon had let himself drink more than he ever did as he tried to forget about how sad it was that he didn’t have anyone who would need to be called if Jon was injured. His drunken mind had remembered that concerned look on Martin’s face, and then… well Jon didn’t remember the specifics thanks to all the alcohol, but he’d woken up the next morning to find a confirmation email from Elias that he’d gotten the faxed paperwork, filled out with all of Martin’s information (that Jon had no idea how he could have possibly known). It was too embarrassing to own up to his drunken mistake, so he’d just left things be and done his best to forget about the whole thing. 

Martin was clearly waiting for some kind of explanation, but even Jon knew that it would be an ass move to say that he’d only written it down while blackout drunk and hadn’t meant it. Jon had absolutely no idea why Martin would want it to mean something anyways, but clearly he did.

So he heaved out a long sigh, and then closed his eyes, trying to tell himself that it was just because the lights in the room were giving him a headache. “This is going to sound quite pathetic, but I didn’t have anyone else to put down, and you’re the one who brings me tea everyday and reminds me to eat and sleep, and I know it’s just because it would be inconvenient if your boss died, but you do a really good job of making it seem like- like you care, so I guess I just… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have put you down without asking you first. It was a foolish thing to do, and I-”

Martin suddenly reached out to gently grab Jon’s nearest hand, which startled Jon into opening his eyes again. With Martin leaning over the bed, Jon could clearly see his face even without glasses, and he could see the earnest look there. “Jon, I do- I do care. About you, I mean. I care about you.” His face turned bright red as he spoke, but he seemed determined to soldier on. “I know that perhaps we don’t know each other very well, but you’re so- and you always- and I just- you know?”

Jon furrowed his eyebrows. “I uh- yes?” He had no idea what Martin was talking about, but he wasn’t sure whether that was because he’d gotten a concussion when he hit the pavement, or if it was because Martin was talking nonsense, so it seemed safest to just nod along and agree. 

For some reason, Jon’s agreement seemed to make Martin excited, and a large smile bloomed across his face. “Really? I mean, I always that you- that you hated me.”

Jon blinked once. He wasn’t sure where the conversation was headed, and maybe it was just pain medication mellowing him out, but he found that he wanted to give an honest answer for once. “I don’t hate you, Martin. I never have. I just- you’re very- you’re very qualified for your position, and I’m… not.”

Martin tilted his head to the side, and Jon had to remind himself that it was not an endearing gesture at all. “Wait, so all this time you’ve treated me like an idiot because you think I’m more qualified than you?”

Jon scowled and turned his head to look away. “Well it’s not as though I have any experience prior to the Institute, and all I ever did was research before my promotion. If anyone should have been made Head Archivist, it’s you.”

There was a long moment of silence between them, and Jon was surprised that Martin never pulled his hand free. When Martin spoke again, it was in such a soft voice, and Jon felt like he had to strain to hear it. “I- I lied on my resume. I was desperate for any kind of job that would help me with my mum’s hospital bills, and I thought that Elias would see right through it because of how ridiculous and unprovable everything I wrote is, but then he hired me instead of getting me arrested, and I’ve just- I’ve just been trying to keep my head down since then.”

That was a lot to take in, and maybe Jon wasn’t the master of appropriate reactions, but he couldn’t help letting out a loud bark of laughter. When he finally looked back at Martin, he could see the hurt expression on the other man’s face, and he finally started to withdraw his hand.

Jon squeezed as much as he could (which wasn’t really saying much considering how weak he felt at the moment), and even though Martin still could have easily pulled away, he didn’t. “Sorry, I didn’t- I’m not laughing at you, I promise. It’s just that, well, all this time I’ve been worried that you would realize how much better-suited you’d be to this position than I am, and I’ve been downright nasty to you to try and- try and stop you from realizing, I guess? But now it turns out that it was all for nothing, and I’m just- I’m sorry for the way I’ve acted towards you since the beginning, but I’m also relieved.”

“Because now you know that I can’t possibly be better than you?” The bitterness in Martin’s voice was something Jon had never heard before, but he got the feeling that it was something Martin had felt on many other occasions.

He quickly shook his head, not wanting Martin to get the wrong idea. “No, nothing like that, I promise. I just meant that I’m relieved that I can stop looking at you as a rival, and instead look at you as- as a person, you know?” He was sure that he wasn’t really explaining himself properly, but it was difficult to think when his head was pounding the way that it was. 

Martin let out a heavy sigh. “You’re so-” then he cut himself off, and his whole body seemed to lose any amount of tension that had been there. “Do you want-”

Jon started nodding before Martin finished. He already knew what was going to be offered. Martin always made the best tea, so of course he wanted some to help him feel better. “Yes.” Then as almost an afterthought he added a soft, “Please.” 

For some reason that made Martin’s face turn even redder, and then he nodded once before swooping forward and pressing his lips against Jon’s. It was an entirely unexpected action, and Jon felt frozen in place for a moment, but once he decided that the warm flutters he felt in his belly were not bad, he allowed himself to return the gesture. It was a bit awkward; clearly neither of them had much practice, but it was still soft and nice, and- oh the way his neck tilted made the nerves all down Jon’s back twinge with pain. He pulled away to gasp for breath and let out a soft moan of pain.

Martin immediately leaned back as well, and gave Jon a careful, assessing look. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think- are you alright? I should probably get a doctor, shouldn’t I?” He leapt up and ran out of the room like it was on fire before Jon could say anything. Though maybe that was a good thing, because Jon wasn’t sure what he could possibly say in response to what had just happened. Maybe he’d have to tell Martin that he was grateful, because the little sparks of pleasure that seemed to stem from Jon’s lips seemed quite efficient at out-weighing the pain that was everywhere else.


End file.
